1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a fastening assembly primarily designed for use on a boat trailer or other mobile or fixed boat support including a supporting cradle used in combination with a suspension assembly to support and secure a predetermined portion of the boat in suspended, secured relationship relative to the boat support.
2. Description of the Prior Art
For many years there has been an increase in the popularity of relatively small boats or other marine craft. Related auxiliary equipment including boat trailers and like means are frequently used to support a pleasure craft and transport it from place to place. Generally, the marine craft that is considered herein is of the size capable of being removed from the water when not in use and transported to the user's home or storage facility rather than remaining in the water.
It accordingly has been the desire of the marine craft industry and related fields to develop an efficient, safe and durable trailer assembly specifically including a fastening assembly for mounting the pleasure craft adequately on a trailer or other boat support being utilized. Such a facility generally must encompass the features of support, suspension and secure connection in a manner which can readily be accomplished with a minimal amount of effort.
Such fastening assembly used in combination with boat trailers in the prior art are represented in the following U.S. Pat. Nos.: Yarbrough 2,503,535, De Lay 3,138,271, Buckner 3,185,330 and Theobald 3,390,796.
While the majority of the prior art fastening assemblies or devices utilized a suspension system incorporating biasing means or a spring element to at least partially suspend the boat in supported, mounted relation on the trailer, a number of these structures have become relatively impractical for a number of reasons. Generally, such prior art structures are unnecessarily complex and/or require strenuous effort in properly positioning and placing the boat on the trailer in a secured and supported position.
Certain prior art structures also, due to their unnecessary complexities are frequently of questionable durability and often times unnecessarily expensive both to produce and maintain.
Accordingly, it is seen that there is a need in the industries relating to pleasure craft for a safe, durable, relatively inexpensive and efficiently operable mechanism which facilitates the fastening, mounting and/or connecting of a boat onto a boat support whether that support be a mobile trailer or an immobile boat support element.